Using Body Mass Index to Identify and Address Obesity in Asian Americans: One Size Does Not Fit All
Authors: Christina C. Wee
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2022)

EditorialsNovember 2022Using Body Mass Index to Identify and Address Obesity in Asian Americans: One Size Does Not Fit AllChristina C. Wee, MD, MPHChristina C. Wee, MD, MPHSenior Deputy Editor, Annals of Internal Medicine, Vice President, Annals Division of the American College of PhysiciansAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/M22-2624 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail Obesity is among the leading causes of preventable deaths, a focus of research, and a public health priority in the United States and worldwide. Despite this, the United States has paid insufficient attention to the problem of obesity in Asian Americans, the country's most rapidly growing ethnic group, in part because of the perception that they are at low risk for obesity and its adverse health effects. The United States did not consistently track the prevalence of overweight and obesity in Asian Americans until the past decade (1). In their article, Shah and colleagues (2) report a study that suggests ...References1. Hsu WC, Araneta MR, Kanaya AM, et al. BMI cut points to identify at-risk Asian Americans for type 2 diabetes screening. Diabetes Care. 2015;38:150-8. [PMID: 25538311] doi:10.2337/dc14-2391 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar2. Shah NS, Luncheon C, Kandula NR, et al. Heterogeneity in obesity prevalence among Asian American adults. Ann Intern Med. 2022;175:1493-1500. doi:10.7326/M22-0609 LinkGoogle Scholar3. Stierman B, Afful J, Carroll MD, et al. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2017–March 2020 prepandemic data files—development of files and prevalence estimates for selected health outcomes. Natl Health Stat Report; no 158. National Center for Health Statistics; 2021. doi:10.15620/cdc:106273 CrossrefGoogle Scholar4. WHO Expert Consultation. Appropriate body-mass index for Asian populations and its implications for policy and intervention strategies. Lancet. 2004;363:157-63. [PMID: 14726171] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. Eckel RH, Jakicic JM, Ard JD, et al; American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on Practice Guidelines. 2013 AHA/ACC guideline on lifestyle management to reduce cardiovascular risk: a report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on Practice Guidelines. Circulation. 2014;129 Suppl 2:S76-99. [PMID: 24222015] doi:10.1161/01.cir.0000437740.48606.d1 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar6. Aggarwal R, Bibbins-Domingo K, Yeh RW, et al. Diabetes screening by race and ethnicity in the United States: equivalent body mass index and age thresholds. Ann Intern Med. 2022;175:765-73. [PMID: 35533384] doi:10.7326/M20-8079 LinkGoogle Scholar7. Selvin E, Wang D, Lee AK, et al. Identifying trends in undiagnosed diabetes in U.S. adults by using a confirmatory definition. A cross-sectional study. Ann Intern Med. 2017;167:769-76. [PMID: 29059691] doi:10.7326/M17-1272 LinkGoogle Scholar8. American Diabetes Association. Classification and diagnosis of diabetes: Standards of Medical Care in Diabetes–2018. Diabetes Care. 2018;41 Suppl 1:S13-27. [PMID: 29222373] doi:10.2337/dc18-S002 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar9. Davidson KW, Barry MJ, Mangione CM, et al; US Preventive Services Task Force. Screening for prediabetes and type 2 diabetes: US Preventive Services Task Force recommendation statement. JAMA. 2021;326:736-43. [PMID: 34427594] doi:10.1001/jama.2021.12531 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar10. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Defining adult overweight and obesity. Accessed at www.cdc.gov/obesity/basics/adult-defining.html on 29 August 2022. Google Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAuthors: Christina C. Wee, MD, MPHAffiliations: Senior Deputy Editor, Annals of Internal Medicine, Vice President, Annals Division of the American College of PhysiciansDisclosures: Disclosures can be viewed at www.acponline.org/authors/icmje/ConflictOfInterestForms.do?msNum=M22-2624.Corresponding Author: Christina C. Wee, MD, MPH, Annals of Internal Medicine, 190 N Independence Mall West, Philadelphia, PA 19106; e-mail, cwee@acponline.org.This article was published at Annals.org on 4 October 2022. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoHeterogeneity in Obesity Prevalence Among Asian American Adults Nilay S. Shah , Cecily Luncheon , Namratha R. Kandula , Sadiya S. Khan , Liping Pan , Cathleen Gillespie , Fleetwood Loustalot , and Jing Fang Metrics Cited byOverweight and Obesity: Current Clinical ChallengesChristine Laine, MD, MPH and Christina C. Wee, MD, MPH November 2022Volume 175, Issue 11Page: 1606-1607KeywordsBody mass indexMedical risk factorsObesityType 2 diabetes ePublished: 4 October 2022 Issue Published: November 2022 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2022 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...